Removing the Firewood from Beneath the Cauldron
People were completely taken aback by the sight of Gongsun Hong being severely injured by the Ancient Savage Beast's claw. They had all assumed that Gongsun Hong would easily kill the Ancient Savage Beast and then obtain more rewards.
The Leopard Girl, who was originally jealous of Gongsun Hong for getting ahead of her, turned pale and was completely at a loss for what to do.
She was glad she hadn't launched a strong attack; otherwise, her fate might have been even worse than Gongsun Hong's.
Realizing this, many people subconsciously glanced at Yi Yun. At this moment, Yi Yun was still dawdling at the very back of the group. He was ten feet behind Lin Yu and the others who were at the very back. He didn't seem like someone who came to the Empress Secret Realm to seek opportunities at all. Instead, he seemed like someone who came to just mess around.
However, at this moment, Yi Yun appeared mysterious and unpredictable in the eyes of many people. They all thought that Yi Yun's killing of the Ancient Savage Beast was just luck. Now that Gongsun Hong had tried the law himself and suffered such a miserable death, people were terrified and wondered what methods Yi Yun had used to kill the Ancient Savage Beast.
"Senior Brother Hong!"
Just as Gongsun Hong was about to fall off the pier and plunge into the raging storm, a young man dressed in a fiery robe pulled out a rope-like magical artifact from his Space Ring, intending to throw it at Gongsun Hong and save him.
However, at that moment, the Ancient Savage Beast roared and continued to charge straight down at Gongsun Hong!
It extended its sharp claws, wreathed in purple lightning, and reached for Gongsun Hong's head!
The young man in the flame-robed robe turned pale and dared not offer any help. He was unsure whether making a rash move at this moment would provoke the Ancient Savage Beast's wrath, and if it attacked him as well, he would perish with it.
Gongsun Hong was merely his fellow disciple; how could Gongsun Hong's life be more important than his own?
"Snap!"
Lightning flashed, and bolts of electricity, like purple pythons, almost licked Gongsun Hong's face. The ancient Giant Beast approached with overwhelming force, and its immense pressure caused everyone to flee.
Among those who retreated was Yi Yun —although he was already quite far back, he still retreated faster than the others.
This left many people speechless. What exactly is this kid doing here?
In fact, as Yi Yun retreated, he had already placed one hand on his Space Ring and locked his mental energy onto the Great Cang Bow.
He could act at any time, but... the real show has only just begun, hasn't it? How could Yi Yun possibly save someone like Gongsun Hong, who's always thinking about his own life?
He's already being kind by not kicking someone when they're down.
Of course, this is also because of the rules of the Empress Secret Realm, which prevent Yi Yun from attacking Gongsun Hong. Otherwise, if Yi Yun were to become cunning, he himself would not know where he would end up.
Despite his severe injury, a fierce glint flashed in Gongsun Hong's eyes. He bit his tongue hard and spat out a mouthful of blood essence. As the blood essence burned, a strange gray mist appeared on Gongsun Hong's face, making him look somewhat sinister!
"Drink!!"
Gongsun Hong roared, and his joints cracked all over. His chest, which had been severely injured, began to heal gradually under the influence of a strange power.
Correspondingly, Gongsun Hong's muscles began to twitch, and the veins on his forehead bulged out one by one!
"Huh? There's that trick too?"
Yi Yun was stunned. He originally thought that Gongsun Hong would definitely be eliminated this time, but unexpectedly, when he was at his wit's end, he used some kind of secret technique and temporarily restored his fighting power.
Many members of major sects possess secret techniques to protect their lives. These techniques often fall under the category of demonic arts, causing immense harm to the body. But when life is in danger, who cares about such things?
"Call out!"
With a flick of his wrist, Gongsun Hong unleashed a thick, flaming whip that struck the pier and entangled it tightly.
The flaming whip tightened, demonstrating Gongsun Hong's ability to manipulate flames into tangible forms, revealing his profound understanding of fire-based laws.
The power of the Flame Law forcefully pulled Gongsun Hong's falling body back up.
At that moment, the Ancient Savage Beast pounced. Gongsun Hong's pupils contracted. Having exhausted his life force and used a secret technique, he gritted his teeth and used the Shadow-Stealing Sword Steps.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
A dozen or so Sword Qi clones of Gongsun Hong appeared. These Sword Qi clones were torn apart by the ancient beast's claw, and all of them exploded into bursts of energy.
At that moment, Gongsun Hong suddenly pulled the fire rope, which quickly shortened, and Gongsun Hong's body flew straight up like an arrow, fighting against the terrifying storm around him, and flew towards the pier!
His chosen flight target was none other than the very back of the group, in the direction closest to Yi Yun!
In this direction, there are four or five trial participants, including Yi Yun and Lin Yu. Apart from Yi Yun, the others are relatively weak.
"Hold!"
Lin Yu immediately swore, clearly indicating that Gongsun Hong was trying to shift the blame!
At that moment, Yi Yun suddenly had a long sword in his hand. The sword was blood red, and a lifelike ghost head was engraved on the hilt, making it look sinister.
This is the Crimson Blood Red Lotus Sword that Yi Yun stole from Granny Thousand Hands!
With lightning speed, Yi Yun slashed down at Gongsun Hong's fiery ropes without hesitation.
For a moment, a faint crimson light emanated from the Crimson Lotus, and a murderous aura filled the air. This was the inherent blood energy of the Crimson Blood Red Lotus, which could be naturally revealed without Yi Yun needing to activate it.
At this moment, Yi Yun felt somewhat worried about the rules of the Empress Secret Realm. However, he had only severed Gongsun Hong's ropes without attacking Gongsun Hong physical body; surely this wouldn't violate the rule against mutual killing?
"You!"
Gongsun Hong's eyes were bloodshot, and his gaze towards Yi Yun was filled with murderous intent.
At this moment, although Gongsun Hong's body was flying upwards with inertia, he was still resisting the terrifying storm below the pier. Once Yi Yun cut the rope, he would have nowhere to pull himself up, and his body would likely be swept back again!
Yi Yun paid no heed to Gongsun Hong's attitude and slashed down cleanly and decisively.
Let's go!
"Snap!"
The fire rope snapped instantly!
The long rope, like a snapped bowstring, lashed out at Gongsun Hong with a whistling sound!
Gongsun Hong's eyes were bloodshot. He was the one who had originally unleashed the flaming whip, so it wouldn't hurt him. He waved his hand to absorb the power of the flames, but at the same time, his body was being pulled by the storm, his speed was drastically reduced, and he was about to fall downwards again!
At this moment, the Ancient Savage Beast realized that it had been deceived by the Sword Qi clone and chased after Gongsun Hong in even greater rage.
Gongsun Hong was already in dire straits, and Yi Yun had further undermined him. He had no choice but to bite his tongue hard and burn another mouthful of his essence blood.
He forcefully channeled his vital energy, twice activating the secret technique, which damaged his very essence, but he couldn't care less.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
Gongsun Hong unleashed four flaming whips in succession, all locking onto the pier. This time, Gongsun Hong avoided the pier where Yi Yun was, but he still chose the direction at the back of the group.
Whoosh!
Gongsun Hong shot upwards at high speed, flying towards the pier.
Yi Yun was slightly taken aback. Gongsun Hong was able to instantly create so many fiery whips; it would be almost impossible to cut them all in half.
In the blink of an eye, Gongsun Hong had already landed on the pier!
He glanced at Yi Yun with murderous intent, then moved swiftly, a beam of light enveloping his body. The next moment, Gongsun Hong vanished.
"Um!?"
Everyone was stunned. Gongsun Hong had simply vanished into thin air. Was he invisible?
Illusion Technique?
Yi Yun's heart stirred. Although Gongsun Hong had disappeared, Yi Yun could actually see Gongsun Hong clearly within his Energy Vision.
This Illusion Technique is not based on fire-based laws. It seems that Gongsun Hong has many hidden methods. As the chief disciple under the age of eighteen of the Lihuo Sect, Gongsun Hong is indeed very powerful, which allowed him to escape death under such circumstances!
"Roar!"
A deafening roar rang out, and the Ancient Savage Beast, following closely behind Gongsun Hong, leaped onto the pier!
Its massive size almost completely filled all twelve parallel piers, and the enormous impact caused the piers to shake violently, making the heroes present lose their footing.
People's expressions changed. During the first trial, they faced numerous dangers even without any interference when confronting this Ancient Savage Beast.
Now, amidst this terrifying storm, their strength is limited, and they have no way to escape from this Ancient Savage Beast!
...(To be continued~^~)